Starbucks in Italy? 10 years of hopes and fears

"Following its UK launch in October, US coffee shop chain Starbucks is said to be considering large-scale European operation, which will also target Italy. The business daily Il Sole 24 Ore said that Starbucks, with some 1 500 outlets in the United States, may be aiming for 500 points of sale across Europe, but they are likely to be points rather than shops, meaning machines at strategic places." (Eurofood, December 3, 1998)

Possibly, the first false-alarm about an alleged imminent launch of the Starbucks coffee chain in Italy. Starbucks did open in the UK that year and in many European nations, but not in Italy. A decade later, the chain giant has not yet annexed the Land of Persimmons. For some Italians, the Seattle-based corporation is the equivalent of the proverbial barbarians at the gate. For others, it is the equivalent of the US Army liberating the nation from an oppressive, fascist coffee culture. The saga continues.

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Comments

[Felice Addeo]

Hi Matteo,
I like your blog and your way of thinking and speaking, but, I think, you're in fault with that "campaign for Starbuck in Italy".
I like Starbuck, but I think We don't need it here in Italy.
It's just like pretending to spread Pizza Hut's store in Naples.

[Max]

Hi Matt, Max here. Long time no see.

Felice: not quite the same.
Pizza Hut delivers a substandard pizza in a crowded fast food restaurant.

Starbucks offers a different coffee (and much more) in a cozy and relaxing enviroment.
I'm hard pressed to find in Milan a bar where you are able to enjoy a stress-free coffee while stretching luxuriously in a comfy couch.

So long,
M.